单选题
More young Americans have become better educated. This reflects a 26 in the labor market, which has increasingly rewarded post-secondary education. At the same time, the economy has seen a decrease in well-paid manual labor that required skills learned on the job or in trade schools. The shift to a more service-oriented economy means universities and colleges have 27 trade schools and apprenticeships. On the one hand that is good because it makes the American labor force better educated. Theoretically, it should also increase meritocracy (精英教育). Much of the income. 28 in America can be explained by the earning differential between college and non-college graduates. As more people attend university, income differences should be reduced. But as university education becomes more widely 29 , should curricula change? Between labor-market demand and innate ability, probably only a fraction of the population benefit 30 from doing so. On the other hand, America 31 from title inflation. A university degree is now a prerequisite (必要条件) to middle-class membership. Rather than just being 32 of education, it is also an expensive and time-consuming signal. The high rate of entrance examination masks a grave problem. Dropping out of university is at 33 levels, especially among low-income Americans. Starting but not finishing a degree 34 in a considerable loss of time and money. Many poor students drop out not just because of cost, but because they find themselves unprepared and frustrated. Offering more practical degrees could be part of the solution to this problem, though it is not a 35 solution. A. available I. equaled B. consists J. proof C. conversely K. replaced D. decrease L. results E. delicate M. shift F. difference N. suffers G. economically O. sufficient H. epidemic